A day out

Today I just went out for a few hours. I wasn’t doing much but I sure was busy. Aside from running some errands I picked up a hot glue gun and a small folding table. One of the errands was to a local school district. The district that wanted me to drive for them but which dilly-dallied from February til June. Anyway, it looks like I’ll be driving for them this year. Whether I drive for them all year depends upon what other opportunities present themselves.

In an email my dad said to me “Driving can house and feed you while you update and look around but it's not going to be more than a hand-to-mouth existence. and not going to give you a pension pot.    It's not likely to give you any stimulating social contact either.” That’s about right. Driving is a hand to mouth existence. It’s better than McDonalds which is employment funded by the Welfare system but not much better. In fact I wonder if McDonalds workers aren’t better off since they get their rent paid and they get food stamps so any cash they earn can be spent on whatever they want.

When I made my connector that fits on the battery, I was unhappy that the wires were just held in place by solder. I know it’s a lot of solder but even so I was unhappy. Thus today I bought a hot glue gun and filled the back of the connector up with hot glue so the cable is more firmly anchored. Hot glue gets used a lot in industry. It’s used to cover electric components that have to be firmly attached to the circuit board for example.

I trimmed the piece of angle iron that I cut the other day (which I might not have mentioned) and drilled a couple of holes in it. These holes will anchor the other connector that the connector I just hot glued will connect to. The angle will be bolted to the underside of the bus. This will make changing batteries much easier. I wish I’d thought of this before! There’s definitely a spell under the bus coming in the future.

That’s the piece that bolts under the bus. Imagine it the other way up. I still need to drill the bolt holes and paint it white but there it is in all its glory.

While I was in the bus today I looked at putting the rear solar input together. I wanted to mount it mostly on the back panel but it looks like I’m going to have to mount it on the ceiling. There is space on the back panel but in a fit of exhuberance I put spray foam behind that panel which makes drilling tricky as wires can’t move out of the way of my drill. I tried digging it out but it was such slow, laborious work I gave up. Note to self - no more spray foam unless I want to use the can to make a work of art!

Oh the fun you can have with a spray foam can that won’t let the foam out until it’s shot with a .22 rifle. The foam comes out then, for sure!

So, tomorrow will be more going out and about. I have forms to fill and drug tests to be performed plus my Dept of Transport medical - all in order to prove that I’m fit to drive a bus! Well, it’s income and not bad income either. It’s not wonderful. I’m not going to be rich but I’m not going to be sleeping under a railway bridge either.

The plan is the same - to install the back solar input, including rectifier, switch and fuse. To change the battery under the bus including installing an easier way of switching batteries. Once that’s all done I will concentrate on working on the bus. I need to sort out the buzzing relay in the console, check to see if I can lower the brake pedal about an inch and might hunt out a new driving seat. The one I have tips forward a little. There’s also the matter of the loose wire dangling from the transmission. That’s something the hillbillies installed.

The little table I bought will go with one of my folding chairs (which is currently in a shed). Thinking ahead to the September trip I figured I could set the little table and chair outside and use the table for my gas cooker or to hold drinks etc while I sit in my chair and enjoy the vacation.